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Endura Pro SL Shell

Designed in the heart of Scotland — a country that isn't exactly renowned for its favourable climes — the Endura Pro SL Shell is a super high-quality and excellent performing jacket for the discerning roadie.

At £165 / $220, the jacket is still obviously a high-ticket purchase, but presents excellent value for money when compared to jackets of a similar quality.

And to top it all off, it even comes in a classy shade of navy — what’s not to love?

7Mesh Oro

7Mesh is a small brand based in Canada's infamous North Shore and was founded by former Arc'teryx team members — and their experience with technical fabrics shows with the Oro.

Made using Gore-Tex's Active with ShakeDry technology fabric, instead of the normal three-layer laminated fabric, the waterproof membrane occupies the outermost layer.

In addition to welded raw hem edges, a laminated zipper and taped seams, the jacket also sees rear flaps that allow for easy access to pockets. It's also got a drop tail and a reflective strip on the bottom edge.

Unfortunately, the jacket's collar is a bit short and the zipper isn't particularly easy to use while riding.

Also made from Gore's Active with Shake Dry fabric, Castelli's Idro is tight fitting and weighs 125g in a size large.

With red accents, reflective stripes and of course Castelli's trademark Scorpion logo it's great looking, though we're hoping that Gore will start making the Active fabric in a colour that's not black.

The wrist closures are tight fitting, which limits flapping, but also makes getting your hand out of the sleeve precarious. It's also got a tall fitted collar and a chunky YKK zip with a pull tab that's easy to use on the bike

The high-performing and pleasingly minimalist Sweet Protection Delirious would have been one of our best-scoring jackets if it weren’t for the lack of a hood.

With that said, while the lack of a hood makes it slightly less appropriate for mountain biking, it does mean it’s also more appropriate for road and commuting duties than some of the other options on test.

The drawcord around the hem is also a nice touch, keeping you well sealed on the wettest days and a little warmer on cold rides.

The jacket is made from Gore-Tex Active Shell, which we’ve always had good experiences with.

Plenty of nice touches, including storm flaps for pockets and pit zips for ventilation

At £60, the B'Twin 700 Membrane is by far the cheapest jacket in this list.

The quality of the construction and fabric of the jacket is incredible given the price, though it does feel a bit firm and crackle a touch when worn — but for this price, it's hardly a criticism worth mentioning.

The single chest pocket is of a usable size and the cut is generous enough that you won't struggle to fit more layers underneath.

Castelli Tempesta

Great feel — more like a light windproof garment than heavy waterproof jacket

Pockets are an unusual but welcome addition

The Castelli Tempesta Race Jacket is a protective, foul-weather shell that breathes so well you can race in it.

It’s made with eVent fabric, Castelli's answer to Gore-Tex, and it’s exceptional. Breathability in a fully waterproof layer is no easy trick to pull off, and the Tempesta is right on par with Gore-Tex's best offerings. Further, the light, silky fabric feels more like a windproof soft-shell than a stiff, waterproof hardshell.

The rear flap extends below the pockets and is welcome when the rain is pouring. Reflective, elastic seams ring the bottom of the extension and the two large, mesh-bottom pockets.

The presence of pockets on a rain jacket struck us as odd at first, but you’ll appreciate the extra storage and the ease of access they provide when the alternative is removing your jacket or searching through a tightly packed saddle bag.

The SingleTrack’s fully sealed 2.5 layer waterproof fabric breathes well, keeps you dry and causes no more clamminess than is typical for waterproof garments. It balances temperatures well, so you’ll stay warm when you’re stopped but won’t overheat when you’re pedalling.

It has a rollaway hood at the top that tucks neatly into the collar and a subtle dropped hem at the bottom that’s adjustable to keep drafts and moisture at bay. The sleeves are also a generous length with adjustable cuffs and zippered underarm vents for when things get a bit heated. It also packs down reasonably small, but not tiny, when not in use.

Its slim-fit is flattering and it didn't flap at high speeds yet afforded the space to pull some funky shapes on the bike without moving position or leaving testers feeling like they were confined in a straitjacket!

Gore's One jacket and its innovative 'Shakedry' technology shook up the cycling jacket market when it launched a few years ago.

At an insanely low 109g in a size large, the jacket is hardly noticeable when on. This barely-there effect is further compounded by the jacket's excellent breathability.

With no fabric on the inside of the jacket, there’s no thermal value apart from wind protection, so pairing it with the right clothing is key. Thankfully, the just-generous-enough cut makes it easy to layer up underneath.

If the tail was a touch longer with a bit of gripper, and perhaps the wrists were easier to get on and off, we reckon this would be the perfect rain jacket for road riding.

Páramo is best known for high-end hiking jackets, but the Quito is a multi-activity waterproof designed with an emphasis on cycling.

The sleeves are lengthy so don’t drift up when riding and the back is long enough for all but the most stretched out riders. Elasticated drawstrings allow you to cinch in the hood and hems to eliminate draughts and flapping fabric.

It’s made from Páramo’s Nikwax Analogy Light Waterproof material, a non-rustly fabric that’s incredibly waterproof while remaining breathable. It’s also windproof and will keep you warm on colder days as well as being comfortable against the skin, feeling more like a shell suit than a waterproof jacket.

Scott is known for making high-quality waterproof jackets and the Trail MTN Dryo 20 is no exception.

The jacket’s capacious hood features a drawcord to easily adjust volume and to help avoid it from drifting into your peripheral vision. It also comes in a wide range of colours to suit every taste. Large pockets also make it easy to retrieve keys or cash.

The jacket is very breathable, but large pit zips make it easy to ventilate if things get steamy.

The jacket certainly isn’t cheap, but it’s a well-featured bit of kit that won’t leave you disappointed.

Rapha has taken a slightly different approach to its jerket opting for just a DWR treatment rather than a laminated membrane fabric.

According to the brand, the thread itself has a Durable Water Resistant (DWR) coating applied before it’s woven into the fabric. It then undergoes a steam-pressure treatment, which shrinks the fabric by half and creates a very dense weave that's claimed to greatly increase its resistance to rain and wind while retaining breathability. Finally, another coat of DWR is applied.

The advantage to using this method is that the Shadow Jersey breathes much better than any membrane. However, the down side is that DWR treatments wash out over time.

The top is race fit and doesn't stretch quite like a regular jersey. It's also got a tall collar, brushed interior, taped seams, three large pockets and a full-length zipped pocket to keep the weather on the outside. Rapha also makes a Shadow version of its Pro Team Bibs too.

Coming from Castelli's sister company Sportful is the Fiandare WS LRR Jacket SS.

While the name is definitely a mouthful, it's made using Gore's Windstopper Light Rain Resistant fabric, making it a bit lighter weight than the Gabba and seeing a more relaxed cut too.

Suggested for temperatures between 5–15°C, the Sportful jacket has three rear pockets complete with drainage holes, a silicone gripper along the bottom hem, brushed interior, YKK waterproof zipper and an extra high collar.

Available in both short and long sleeve versions, the Gabba (now called the Perfetto) was the one that started the jerket craze. In fact, so much of the pro peloton started using them as a joke that the brand began shipping them with a Sharpie so you too could black out the logos.

Made from Windstopper X-Lite Plus fabric, the Gabba is meant to be worn as a jersey instead of a temporary shell. It has three pockets and fits close to the skin. Because of this, unfortunately it doesn't pack down well and probably won't fit in your pockets.

The thin soft-shell material wicks well even when you’re hammering along, and two big zipped vents help you control core temperature. It's completely windproof and largely water repellent, with the coating shrugging off showers, and long sleeves and a dropped tail mean excellent coverage.

A waterproof jacket used to mean a hard-shell garment made from a fabric that feels more like plastic, however, we're now seeing the rise of the 'jerket' or rain jersey. These are softshell tops that feel like a jersey but either use a waterproof membrane or DWR treatment to repel precipitation.

Things would be easier if it were simply a matter of keeping the rain out, but pedalling makes you hot and sweaty, and the heat and moisture you generate needs an escape route. The trouble is, the very properties that allow a waterproof jacket to keep the rain on the outside also make it difficult to deal with the damp building up on the inside.

The ideal solution, therefore, is a cycling jacket that combines being waterproof with being breathable, which is a difficult — but by no means impossible — balance to strike. Some garments manage it by using advanced materials; others solve the problem by incorporating vents into their designs.

Aside from being both waterproof and breathable, it’s worth seeking out a jacket that packs down into a tiny package that’s easily pocketable. A garment that can be stowed in a jersey pocket, saddlebag or rucksack can be conveniently carried with you at all times. Better still, if the rain stops, you can take it off and put it away rather than be forced to keep wearing it long after it’s done its job.

How waterproof fabrics work

Waterproof fabrics are pretty amazing, and they work in one of two ways; either they are multi-layer laminate fabrics or regular woven fabrics that get a DWR (durable water repellent) treatment designed to keep water out. While both achieve the same goal, they work slightly differently.

DWR

Durable Water Repellent or DWR is your wet weather gear's first line of defence. It's not a laminate or coating but a treatment applied to the fabric's outer surface, and all waterproof garments, except for those where the membrane is the outermost surface, receive a DWR finish.

The treatment does not inhibit breathability because it doesn't fill the gaps between the fibres, instead it bonds the individual fibres to help the garment shed water and prevent saturation.

Refreshing and retreating a garment is quite simple and there are plenty of spray on or wash in options available

DWR treatments are able to shed water because they increase the contact angle of moisture on a fabric by forcing a water droplet to maintain its surface tension; so when you see water beading on a fabric, the DWR is hard at work.

When the DWR is applied to a fabric it creates what are called micropegs or microspikes that protrude from the fibres and prevent water from spreading out, forcing it to form round droplets. These 'beads' of water slide off the fabric without having the opportunity to seep in.

Unfortunately, DWR treatments are not permanent and wear off over time, accelerated by abrasions and some detergents.

When this happens, the fabric will no longer cause water to bead and will become saturated and heavy. Not to fear, refreshing and retreating a garment is quite simple and there are plenty of spray on or wash in options available. Check out our guide on how to rejuvenate your waterproof cycling gear.

Laminate fabrics

While this is a diagram of a GoreTex membrane, those from eVent and Windstopper use a similar construction

The majority of waterproof breathable fabrics are made from laminate materials, which usually consist of an inner fabric optimised for wicking moisture, a waterproof membrane, and an outer face fabric with a DWR treatment.

Gore-Tex, Thinsulate, Polartec and eVent are all internal membranes that are sandwiched between two other materials — usually something abrasion resistant on the outside, with a soft liner on the inside. Even the Castelli Gabba Jersey is made using a Windstopper laminate fabric.

The reason these lamination techniques allow for water repellent characteristics is that the inner membranes are actually full of holes. This may seem counter-intuitive, but a Gore-Tex membrane boasts nine billion pores, each 1µm — a millionth of a metre — wide per square inch. The holes are big enough to allow water vapour created by sweat evaporation to escape, but are too small for water droplets to sneak through.

The advantage of these fabrics is they can't wet-out because there is no face fabric to saturate

These internal membranes are quite fragile, which is why there's an abrasion resistant layer on the outside of the garment. This outer layer receives DWR treatment and, as we mentioned before, the problem with DWR treatments is that they eventually wash away, causing a jacket to ‘wet out’, meaning the moisture escaping from inside and landing on the outside saturates the outer fabric, clogging the pores of the membrane and eliminating breathability.

Most outerwear today is based on this two and a half or three-layer lamination, but the fabrics and membranes are continuing to evolve and we're now seeing jackets eliminating the outer fabric.

Pioneered by Columbia with its OutDry fabric, brands have figured out how to toughen up these membranes and eliminated the DWR treated outer fabric. We've now seen a few cycling specific jackets using GoreTex's version, the One Active fabric, which allows the membrane to be used as an outer 'beading surface'.

The advantage of these fabrics is they can't wet-out because there is no face fabric to saturate, and weigh next to nothing and breathe better too.

What to look for when buying a waterproof cycling jacket

Taping

Taping is used to seal the seams in a waterproof jacket on the inside. It does add bulk and reduce a jacket’s breathability — so some of the jackets here trade a bit of seam leakage for a better overall performance.

Breathability

It’s no good keeping rain out if you get soaked by sweat from within. Different fabrics have different water vapour transfer rates but cut, lining, membranes and vents all make a significant difference to how dry you stay.

Waterproofing

To be officially waterproof a garment has to withstand the pressure of 1,000mm of water without leaking. This test concentrates on jackets that keep moisture managed so you stay warm however foul the forecast.

Usually, this is achieved through an internal membrane like those from Gore-Tex and eVent.

Care

The worst enemy of your wet weather gear is your washing machine. Detergents strip off waterproof coatings, and conditioners will clog the pores and fibres that help fabric wick and breath. Still, it's important to keep waterproof fabrics clean because dirt and oil can clog membranes and degrade DWR treatments. Always read washing instructions.

Often overlooked is the outer DWR treatment. If your jacket is wetting out as described above, there are ways to 'revive' the treatment on your jacket. Some manufacturers say to throw it in the tumble dryer for a few minutes on low to medium heat, others recommend 'touch ups' with an iron on the warm setting. Again refer to the manufacturer's instructions.

Finally, if the DWR treatment can't be saved you're going to want to re-treat, and there are quite a few spray-on and wash-in products available from brands such as Granger's and Nikwax. We're beginning to sound like a broken record here, but, again, always follow manufacturer's instructions.

Pockets, hoods and zipped vents might seem a good idea on a hanger, but not if they make a jacket too bulky to shove in your back pocket when you’re not wearing it. Extra features will all add to the cost too.

Originally from Denver, Colorado, Colin now resides in Sydney, Australia. Holding a media degree, Colin is focused on the adventure sport media world. Coming from a ski background, his former European pro father convinced him to try collegiate crit racing. Although his bright socks say full roadie, he enjoys the occasional mountain bike ride, too.